I hope that it's not too late to join. I told myself I would get started on my weight loss journey with the start of the year, and..... I haven't started. I just am not holding myself accountable. Always going to start tomorrow... and I'm sick of it. I had luck on the WISH boards a few years ago, and came here looking for inspiration and a group to join. I hope that that is okay with all of you.
I've read the entire thread and am really enjoying the articles and thought provoking questions, so I decided to answer most of them in my first post. I'll try to keep it short. lol.
Introduction: My name is Susan. I just turned 43. I'm a relatively new (6+ months) night shift RN on a surgical floor. I work 3 12-hour shifts per week, unless I pick up extra. Married to my husband for 20 years. We have two kids. Our daughter is 18, a senior in high school, and gearing up for college this fall. Our son will be 16 soon, ready to start driving, and trying to gain weight for football.
Goal: I need to lose about 50 pounds. Which just breaks my heart. I had it all off the year before I turned 40. And I spent the last couple years in nursing school putting it all back on. Ugh. But more than the weight, I just really need to get healthier. I'm over 40 now, and I know that my bad habits are going to lead into health problems if I don't get myself reigned in and stay that way. BP issues, Diabetes, joint wear and tear are all issues I'll face if I don't get healthier and maintain that lifestyle.
What is Your Motivation? Obviously, I want to look better. I'm girl enough to admit that. I'm so disappointed with myself when I see family photos. But, I also want to set a good example for my kids. And I want to feel strong again.
Why is this time Different? I really don't know. But, I know that I HAVE to start making this a priority. I see patients every day suffering from the affects of the same poor lifestyle choices I'm making, and I know what I need to do to avoid that... and it's all do-able. I just have to woman up and do it.
What are your roadblocks? I know I do better on a schedule and with a strict routine to follow. But, with the type of job I have now, that's hard to do. And it makes it hard for me to start something and stick with it. When I have my night shifts, I have next to no time for anything else. What little free time I have, I just want to veg out and relax. And when I have my days off, I'm home alone, with too much time on my hands to "get into trouble." I've got to figure out how to make this very different work/personal life schedule work for me.
How are you going to do this? I used WW years ago and know that diet tracking is a key feature to my success. So, I'm going to try My Fitness Pal for food tracking. I don't have a specific "diet" in mind, because I'd like to make this work in a way I can maintain long term. So, I'm just going to try to focus on eating a healthy balance. Avoiding "junk carbs" and focusing on healthy choices. More veggies. Pre-planning more.
Do you have foods you HAVE TO avoid? I know that "junk carbs" are a real issue for me. Even crackers can set me off and before long I'm eating everything I can get my hands on. So, I need to avoid crackers, breads, pastries, and the like.
Family/Friends want you to eat something not on the plan? I don't have a major issue with this. Enough people in my group have had similar issues, that they generally are helpful when they know I'm watching what I eat.
Fall off the plan when feeling out of control? To an extent. I mentioned earlier that I do better when my life is scheduled and organized. But, I also know that's not something I'm going to have again as a nurse. It's rare to find a 9-5 job in this field.
So, I need to find a way to manage those super busy days vs those super lazy days to find a balance in my eating/exercise routines.
Negative Self Talk? Overall I consider myself a "glass half full" kind of gal. But, when it comes to dieting I do notice a trend toward "Perfectionism/Polarizing." If I eat one lousy food I didn't plan on, I tend to consider the whole day shot. Then I eat and eat and eat. Then try to start again the next day. I need to get over this line of thinking since it's just giving myself an excuse to eat more once I've "blown the plan" on a given day.
Ways to combat the negative self talk? Honestly, I've really only got one way. To recognize it when it happens, and before I turn one little stumble into a fall off the cliff. lol.
Are my goals easier or harder to meet in winter? I would say harder. The comfort foods are so, well, comforting. And it's harder to get outside for walks. It's been icy here most of the week. It's hard to find a place to walk. And even if you walk, the pace is slow, because you're trying not to fall. Top that off with hating to be cold, lol, and it's a "perfect storm." I'm working on this though. My BFF is a teacher at the local highschool and when she's available to open the door, we can walk in the halls rather than outside.
Two o'clock, Crazy busy, forgot lunch, starving, 15 minutes to eat. What do you do? In the past, I probably would have just not eaten. This is one of my problems, going from days where I eat almost nothing, to days where I binge. And I know it's no good for my diet. My body is just putting what I do eat into stored fat because I'm not eating regularly. I'm trying to keep some healthy snacks on hand now. Dried veggies (peas and soybeans are pretty good and have a satisfying crunchiness), nuts (in moderation for the protein). I can keep those in my purse, just in case, and are easy to grab on the go.
Favorite non-traditional veggie: Again, I really like brussel sprouts and asparagus. I eat the sprouts steamed usually. I eat the asparagus roasted.
Least Favorite veggie: probably carrots. Can't say why, but I just don't love them.
Fruits: I pretty much like them all. But try to keep it to one a day while dieting. It could become easy to binge on when it's the only "sweet" thing in my diet.
I think that was everything. lol.
My starting weight. 195.
My goal. 145.
I'm 5'4". I know that many sources would say I should weigh less than that. But, I've only weighed under 140 once as an adult and I was NOT eating enough and used ephedra (the older crowd may recognize this dangerous med) to achieve that weight. I feel like I'm older now and I'm looking for a healthy balance I can live with, not super skinny crash diet approaches. So. 145 is my goal.
Since January is half over, I'm going to try for 5 pounds this month. My weight loss tends to be slower now that I'm older, but I'm sure I'll lose a few pounds of water weight in the beginning. So, 5 pounds should be doable. And it will be nice to get into the 180s.
If you need more info for the record-keeping let me know. And again, hope you don't mind me jumping on board a big late.
Good Luck to everyone else!!! Can't wait to join you all in meeting our goals!
I love all vegetables, haven't had one I didn't really like. The only one I don't care for but will eat is celery. Corn is another that I don't care for and its really a grain anyway. 
Well technically both I guess but majority of the corn crops is used as grain feed for cattle so I personally count it as a grain. But occasionally I'll eat corn on the cob. Or if its mixed in a dish at family/friends I'll still eat it. And I eat it in other forms corn syrup obviously and corn tortillas sometimes.
I'll answer the vegetable question though, since I missed it yesterday. We were part of a CSA for the first time last year and received all kinds of vegetables. The one that surprised me is kholrabi. It was good roasted, never had it before that.
She just doesn't get how unfit/obese mom can beat her at dancing game but I have done enough aerobics that my coordination is fairly good even if I look extremely funny/ridiculous doing it. 
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